Darlington Football Club currently sit in the National League North, the sixth level of the English football pyramid. While other teams in the league boast nicknames like Scarborough’s ‘The Seadogs’, Chester’s ‘The Seals’, and Oxford City’s ‘The Hoops’, Darlington F.C.’s nickname, ‘The Quakers’, stands out as something a little different…
In the past, I have been misled by the use of the Quaker name and image, only to find a disappointing lack of connection to the Society of Friends and with an initial look at Darlington F.C., I was worried I could be in for a similar disappointment. Aside from the badge, which features a traditional Quaker hat and the nickname there are few other overt references to Quakerism in the club’s identity.
On the day following a match, the local evening paper, which ran until the mid-1980s, would feature an image of a Quaker in a hat, with a smiley face after a win or a sad face following a loss. In the late 1990s, the club introduced a new mascot, a Quaker figure named Mr Q, an ironic choice considering Quakers traditionally don’t use titles. Though Mr Q was briefly ousted by the Tweenies as a previous owner had the rights to the colourful puppets, he still appears at pitch side at games and supports initiatives in the local community.
So why does this National League North club call themselves ‘The Quakers’? It’s all to do with the history of Darlington and the contributions that Quakers made to the town. There have been a number of well-known and influential Quaker families from Darlington.
The Pease Family
Few families are as closely tied to Darlington’s history as the Peases. A prominent Quaker family in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the Peases were involved in a wide range of industries, from banking and textiles to politics, with Joseph Pease becoming the first Quaker Member of Parliament. However, it is their role in the development of the railways that left the most lasting mark on the town.
In 1818, Edward Pease, his son Joseph, and a group of fellow Quaker businessmen, including Jonathan Backhouse, proposed a railway linking Darlington and Stockton. The original plan envisioned horse-drawn carriages, but in 1821 George Stephenson persuaded Edward Pease that steam power represented the future of rail travel. The result was the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 1825, the world’s first public steam railway, a milestone that is still commemorated today on the Darlington F.C. badge, where a steam locomotive sits opposite the Quaker hat.
The Backhouse Family
The Backhouse family, like the Peases, were a prominent Quaker family in Darlington. Their business interests ranged from linen manufacturing to horticulture, but it was finance and banking for which they became best known. The family’s bank operated extensively across County Durham. Through a combination of marriage and business partnerships, the Backhouses became closely connected with other Quaker banking families, including the Peases and the Gurneys, strengthening their financial position.
The family, in particular Jonathan Backhouse, played an important role in the development of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. The Backhouse’s bank provided the financial backing needed to turn early plans into reality. Jonathan Backhouse himself served as the railway company’s first treasurer, before later stepping away from business to become a full-time Quaker minister. While the Pease family are often most closely associated with the railway’s vision, the Backhouses’ support behind the scenes was just as vital to its success.
The Procter Sisters
Though less well known than the Pease or Backhouse families, the Quaker sisters Jane and Elizabeth Procter left their own lasting legacy in Darlington. Originally from Kirklevington, the sisters established the Polam Hall School in the town, with Jane serving as headteacher. The school was founded as a Quaker boarding school for girls, today the school is co-educational and inter-denominational, but it still occupies the same hall that has long been intertwined with Darlington’s Quaker heritage.
The building itself reflects those connections. Jonathan Backhouse purchased Polam Hall in 1825 as a family home, and after the deaths of Jonathan and his wife Hannah, the property passed into new ownership. It was later leased to the Procter sisters for their school, before eventually being acquired by Arthur Pease in 1878 after a period of financial trouble for the owners.
So, while Darlington F.C.’s nickname might seem unusual, ‘The Quakers’ is far more than a label. It’s a nod to the families and figures who shaped the town’s history and a reminder that football clubs often carry with them stories that reach far beyond the pitch.
